Getting lost in Central Park...priceless

(or, "It's a good thing you did that, a real good thing!")


Yeah, thank my mom for the tag lines there. ^_^ And for this mega-nostalgia trip clip! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ux3laLkueZk


That stemmed from our conversation when I called her to tell her about my day. Now I get to tell you:

So Michael, my friend from work, came over this morning, & I drove us down to the train station. Took the train into the City, & had a good, long walk. But, unlike my Japan Day experience, we actually found stuff without wandering very much, 'cuz he has a sense of direction! Took the subway up to 72nd, & walked around Central Park, or at least a nice portion of it. Actually hit a few spots I hadn't seen my previous time there, which, of course, required the taking of photos (Strawberry Fields was decorated today, too, so I also got a shot of that). Strayed a little off the beaten track at one point - we were going in the right direction but exited too early; it was okay, though, 'cuz I got to show him Columbus Circle (59th), & we walked up the rest of the way (back to 72nd). On the way, I saw a few nifty buildings I'd never seen before, & took pics of them. Passed the entrance to Tavern on the Green, too, which I'd never seen (though I didn't get a shot of that - it was only the sign). Went to lunch at Kumo Sushi, where we had bento (tried the Teriyaki Tofu one this time - YUM!) &, of course, green tea ice cream. My friend had never had that, & hadn't ventured into chopstick territory before, either (despite having had Japanese food before), so that was fun to introduce him to. He dug the food, & was very good with the hashi (sticks) for a first-timer. Also taught him a teeny bit of practical Japanese. :)

He was kind enough to pay for lunch (I offered to chip in for my half, but he wouldn't let me, so I left the tip), & we missed the majority of the rain - it was starting when we left the park, but I'd brought my umbrella; it poured while we were eating, but had almost stopped as we were leaving - & took the subway back to Midtown...where it started to pour again. As my umbrella wasn't quite large enough for 2 people to fit under comfortably, we stopped at a souvenir place & he found a nice, large one, which he bought. I showed him some landmark buildings/areas, like the Chrysler & Empire State bldgs., Times Square (including the theatre where I saw Diru, & where the line stretched - the restaurant where I had dinner that night isn't there anymore! It's a Levi's outlet now), Rockerfeller Center, Radio City Music Hall, NBC Studios, St. Patrick's Cathedral (which we went into for a minute; my first time in there - it's SOOOOOOOOO beautiful!! But I didn't take any pics 'cuz there was a wedding going on), Bryant Park (which we went in - I'd been outside it but never in it before), the NY Public Library, I can't remember any more. Took him, of course, to my haunts - Kinokuniya (where I showed him Mana's many appearances in the Goth-Loli Bible, as well as perusing various issues of CURE, one of which had an article on Jun's new project, another of which had an article on Riku's band, Chariots - including a very scrummy photo! But I saved my cash (don't think I wasn't tempted, though), showed Michael the CD & DVD section (no "Bara no Seidou", though I picked up a flyer for one of the Death Note live-action films), then made our way to Book Off - which they've rearranged! The same thing happened to me in Tower when I was in Shibuya. MUST be a Japanese thing. So I got promptly lost (I used to at least be able to go right to the L'Arc), but found a couple of my bands eventually, or should I say, where there stuff would've been if they'd had any. Took a gander at the anime & whatnot, debated whether or not to buy that Death Note soundtrack again (yeah, it was still there), decided against it (though again, tempted), & headed back to Times Square to check out Virgin Megastore. Didn't buy anything, but looked long & longingly at many things I would get if I could afford to get them all...

Back to Penn Station via the subway, where we ducked into Penn Sushi. I bought a bottle of green tea (which I think was the same brand I bought at Narita Airport when I landed in Japan), as well as some desserts I'm always itching to try but never do 'cuz I end up buying sushi &/or gyoza & shumai instead. But since I had sushi with my lunch, I went in for the mystery desserts today. There's a green cake thing (sort of rolled around a bit of cream), a brown cake thing that may or may not be stuffed with something, & green tea daifuku. (I saved the cakes but ate the daifuku a little while ago - they're like marshmallows! Very lovely!) Used my own bag, natch, & had a little conversation with the bishette who works there. I always see her when I go there, but haven't really spoken at any length with her. I can't remember who started it, it might've been my friend asking me what the word for delicious was for the umpteenth time (not that I minded - it's "oishii", in case you were wondering), & she said it, too. He asked if she were Japanese, but it turns out she's Korean. I used my Rirakuma bag, which she thought was cute, & she & another, older lady who I guess works there, too, or runs the place or whatever, were trying to read it (I knew it meant something + bear, but I just found out it means "relaxed bear"), & I was showing them the katakana. It was kind of a neat little moment.

We had some time before the train, so we wandered about a bit, looking at different shops & whatnot. Ran into one of the guys from work, Luis. We were introduced to his wife & son, & his parents - the latter were here on vacation from Puerto Rico, & Luis had taken them into the City to show them the sights. We chatted for a bit, then went on our way.

When it was finally time to board, we were on the niftiest train!! It was a double-decker!! I'd never even been aware that those things existed! The seats were like airline seats - more comfy, even! And there was a digital thing that noted the upcoming stops. It was so cool! Got into some conversation with a guy sitting across from us. Between throwing about tiny bits of French, talking cinema, & concocting the Great Cult Crossover - The Kiss Saves Santa Star Wars Xmas Special (Kiss, light sabers in hand, saves Santa from Darth Vader, who can't stand the sound of rock music) - it was a hoot & a half.

Back to the station, finally, & drove home. But the day isn't over yet. See, Michael used to live in Arizona, & got to know some of the Goth community there. You'd never think this person who is kind of soft-spoken, a chemist, a little nerdy-looking (& I don't mean that in any derogatory connotation whatsoever), who likes watching comedies, would be into music like Goth or metal. But he can actually dig that sort of thing, & was interested in hearing the Japanese take on it. So I'd had a few CD's in the car, & it was pretty intriguing (& fun) to see him react so positively to stuff like Dir en grey, Moi dix Mois, & Phantasmagoria! He asked about my J-rock colleciton, & if I had any video that he might be able to see. So I let him hang out for a little bit when we got back & showed him clips by Diru, Malice Mizer (Klaha era), Hyde, Gackt, & Mago. If I can figure out how to do it on this computer, now that my Music Match Jukebox seems pretty much defunct, I said I'd make him a sampler. (Worse comes to worse, I'll do it on audio-cassette.)

Said our good-byes after that, & he was off home. I called my mom, finished my tea & daifuku, & came on-line. Will probably pass out after Death Note.


EDIT: Photos!

Just a quick shot before company arrived.

Pretty picture by the water’s edge, Central Park.

Another pretty shot of the lake, Central Park.

Strawberry Fields, Central Park.

Teriyaki tofu bento from Kumo Sushi.

Grand Central Station, exterior.

Interior of Grand Central Station.

Japanese desserts - daifuku, sponge cake, bean paste cake. Please note, the sponge cake pic I had to nick off the ‘net since I forgot to take a photo of mine before snarfing it. ^_^